At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead data engineering projects and ensure high-quality data products for decision-making.
- Company: Join British Airways, a pioneering airline with over 100 years of history.
- Benefits: Enjoy staff travel perks, competitive salary, and opportunities for personal growth.
- Other info: Embrace diversity and inclusion in a collaborative workplace focused on innovation.
- Why this job: Make an impact in a dynamic environment while shaping the future of data at BA.
- Qualifications: Strong SQL skills and experience with cloud data management tools required.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 80000 £ per year.
hackajob is collaborating with British Airways to connect them with exceptional professionals for this role.
A career without limits. As the nation’s flag carrier, we take great pride in connecting Britain with the world and the world with Britain. It’s something we’ve been doing for over 100 years, ever since we launched the world’s first international scheduled air service between London and Paris. This originality has been in our blood since day one. It’s the spirit we share with the people that fly with us, our partners, and our colleagues. So, whether you are a reassuring voice on the end of a phone, a smile at the door, under a wing keeping the turbines spinning or landing us gently in far‑flung places, a job at British Airways is yours to make. We know great things can happen when you’re inspired to think big and bring your ambition to work every day, which is why, at British Airways the sky is never the limit.
The role: Principal Data Engineer. You’ll be part of either our Data & AI Delivery team or the Commercial data team, acting as a technical leader for data engineering across the organisation. These teams play a critical role in enabling secure, scalable and high‑performing data products that underpin data‑driven decision‑making across British Airways.
What you’ll do:
- Act as a technical leader for data engineering best practice across delivery teams
- Lead the design, build, test and deployment of secure and scalable data pipelines
- Maintain and operate data products, ensuring availability, performance and resilience through monitoring and incident management
- Provide assurance on code quality and automation used to manage data flows
- Lead service reviews, health checks and root cause analysis to improve reliability and reduce operational overhead
- Set and embed standards for data processing documentation and version control
- Support and coach engineers on engineering patterns, coding standards and automated testing
- Lead agile ceremonies, delivery planning and retrospectives to support continuous improvement
- Define and improve developer experience by working with data product teams to resolve data processing issues
- Line manage Senior Data Engineers and support their development
- Participate in an on‑call rota to support live data products
What you’ll bring to British Airways:
- Strong hands‑on technical leadership in data engineering
- Deep understanding of cloud‑based data ingestion, processing and storage techniques
- Expert knowledge of data processing, testing and monitoring practices
- Strong understanding of enterprise data management, optimisation and security at scale
- Confidence influencing technical direction and engineering standards
- Strong stakeholder engagement skills across business and technical teams
- Ability to break down complex problems and work effectively in ambiguous environments
- Delivery‑focused, accountable and pragmatic mindset
- Collaborative approach with a focus on capability building and knowledge sharing
Your experience:
- Excellent SQL development experience
- Highly experienced in data ingestion, processing and storage techniques on cloud native tooling
- Experience cloud data management i.e. Snowflake, AWS, DBT, or similar Paas and SaaS offerings
- Experience of enterprise data management and security at scale
- Knowledge of data modelling and optimisation
- Expert in data processing, testing, and monitoring practices and frameworks
- Experience supporting production data systems and resolving operational issues in CI/CD processes and agile development workflows
- Expert in information security principles and access control within data environments
- Degree or equivalent training in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related discipline is desirable
What we offer: We believe that all the people who work with us should feel valued for the part they play. It’s one of the reasons our rewards go far beyond a competitive salary. From the day you join us, you’ll get access to brilliant staff travel benefits including unlimited basic and premium standby tickets on British Airways flights. You’ll also receive up to 30 discounted ‘Hotline’ airfares per year for yourself, friends, and family. At British Airways you’ll have the chance to take on new challenges and move forward in a way that feels right for you. We encourage all those who work for us to consider opportunities right across our business to help you develop and progress. We never stand still, and we don’t expect our people to either.
Inclusion & Diversity: At British Airways we all have a part to play in creating an inclusive place to work. Diverse representation among our people is really important to us and we recognise that all our colleagues are uniquely different and bring their own originality, creativity and identity to work. Inclusion and diversity is a key driver of innovation and we’re committed to creating a culture where everyone feels that they can be themselves. We’re looking for people from all backgrounds and cultures to join us and be a part of our journey to become a Better BA as we continue to connect Britain with the world and the world with Britain.
Principal Data Engineer in Hounslow employer: British Airways
At British Airways, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer, offering a dynamic work environment where innovation and collaboration thrive. As a Lead Network Engineer, you'll enjoy unparalleled staff travel benefits, opportunities for professional growth, and a commitment to inclusion and diversity that ensures every voice is heard. Join us in shaping the future of air travel while enjoying a fulfilling career that truly takes you places.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Principal Data Engineer in Hounslow
✨Get Involved in Data Science Meetups
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Join professional bodies related to data science, like the Data Science Society or similar organisations. Getting involved can lead to mentorship opportunities and insider knowledge about full-time positions at companies like British Airways.
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We think you need these skills to ace Principal Data Engineer in Hounslow
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Off Your Projects:In the world of data science, your projects can speak volumes about your skills. Make sure to showcase a few key projects in your CV or portfolio, especially those that highlight your ability to work with data sets, build models, or use relevant tools like Python, R, or SQL. Don’t forget to include links to any GitHub repositories if applicable!
Quantify Your Achievements:Employers love numbers! When drafting your CV, highlight your achievements with quantifiable results. For instance, mention how your data analysis led to a certain percentage increase in efficiency or revenue at a previous job or project. These details can really make your application pop!
Craft a Tailored Cover Letter:For a full-time role at British Airways, your cover letter should reflect your passion for data science and your excitement about the specific projects or values of the company. Dive into why you’re a good fit, how your skills align with their needs, and any unique perspectives you can bring to the team.
Stand Out with Relevant Courses and Certifications:Although experience talks, relevant courses or certifications can be your ticket to impressing hiring managers at British Airways. Mention any standout courses you've completed that equipped you with essential skills, such as machine learning certifications or data visualisation courses. This shows your commitment to continuously developing your skills in the field!
How to prepare for a job interview at British Airways
✨Brush Up on Your Statistics
For a data science role, we need to seriously sharpen our statistics skills. Get ready to tackle technical questions on probability distributions, hypothesis testing, and regression analysis. These are often the bread and butter of data science interviews, so don't just skim over them!
✨Showcase Your Projects
Prepare a killer portfolio showcasing your data science projects. We should include details about the datasets used, the tools and techniques applied, and the impact of your findings. If we can walk them through a particularly challenging project or a cool visualisation that had real-world implications, it’ll really make us stand out!
✨Get Comfortable with Python and R
Most data science positions require us to be proficient in programming languages like Python and R. We should practice common libraries like pandas, NumPy, and scikit-learn, and be ready for live coding exercises or algorithm questions. Showing off our coding chops can really impress the interviewers at British Airways!
✨Prepare for Case Studies
Expect to encounter real-world case studies during the interview. We might be asked how we’d approach a data problem or analyse a dataset to extract insights. It's essential to think out loud and demonstrate our problem-solving process so that the interviewer can see our logical thinking in action.
